I got offered a new job today from a really big company. One of the few companies I’ve always wanted to work for. I gracefully declined. Not just because I love my job at IBM, but because there is SO much that I want to do here with the technology that we’ve got and I haven’t even got started yet.

But that’s the problem with fast moving industries such as technology or marketing. Business are constantly looking for new talent to energise their teams or drive their new thing forward, and it’s easy to be seduced and flattered when somebody else starts to take notice of you.

Some people constantly bounce between jobs.

Others stay and try to get things done.

Both have their own merits (obviously), but one thing I have noticed is that the first ground of people focus on themselves, and the second group focus on others. Why?

Bouncing between jobs and climbing the career ladder is a sure fire way to promotion and more money. Staying somewhere to get things done, is usually not as lucrative – but it usually results in creating something productive and meaningful.

The first situation lacks momentum, because you are constantly stopping and starting and trying to get up to speed with your new company / team / learning curve.

The second situation is driven by momentum.

Seeing a project with momentum at a large company like IBM is a wonderful thing. Of course it has its challenges, politically and organisationally, but once a project or idea gains momentum there is no stopping it.

All of this reminded me of a wonderful story I heard about momentum from John Maxwell.

A 400-tonne freight train traveling at just 30mph could power through a 1-metre thick steel re-enforced concentrate wall, if one was placed in front of it on the tracks. If you take that same train, and place a block of wood onto a few inches square in front of the drive wheels when it is stationary, that train will never be able to get going. Why? Because in the first instance the train has momentum. In the second case, it does not.

And so it is with people.

Swapping and changing projects or jobs regularly is really hard. It takes a while to get up-to-speed and a long time to gather any momentum. eg. Building a community, growing a new brand, starting a new business, launching a new podcast…

But people who focus on a slightly longer term vision are usually the ones who gather momentum. It might take a few months or years before you have it, but once you have it, there may be no stopping you.

I’m thinking about people like Gary Vaynerchuk. The famous social media superstar was once not so famous. Years ago, he took over his fathers’ wine business and immediately cancelled all their advertising spend, only to focus on building an online video show WineLibraryTV. For 6 months the company was losing 24% a month, as a result of dropping their advertising spend from billboards, press and trade magazines like Wine Spectator. But once the podcast gathered momentum, this started to change. The community grew, sales followed, and within 7 years the $2M wine wholesaler had growing into a $60M online wine business.

For @GaryVee – it wasn’t just his vision and his hustle which made all the difference, it was his momentum.

Some other stuff Maxwell has to say about momentum. (If you like the cut of his jib, you should but some of his books. He’s

It is never the size of your problem that is the problem.
It’s a lack of momentum.